Full Form of ECS

Full-Form of ECS (Electronic Clearing System)

The full form of ECS stands for Electronic Clearing System. It is a system by which funds can be transferred from one bank account to another electronically. It is normally used for organizations making bulk transactions in a day. It can also be used for making certain recurring payments such as interest, salary, dividend, bill payments, loan payments and so on.

Objectives

The electronic clearing system aims to provide a facility to the users for making bulk payments which would be very troublesome if done through physical mode involving the presentation of documents at the respective branch of the bank. It helps for fast and secure fund transfers in case of payments that are required to be carried out in bulk or repetitively.

Types

There are two types of the electronic clearing system, known as ECS (Debit) and ECS (Credit), based on outflow or inflow of funds by the organization.

#1 – ECS (Debit)

It is used for raising debits to numerous bank accounts for single credit to the bank account of the user. It helps the user to collect payments from its various customers which are periodic or recurring in nature.

#2 – ECS (Credit)

It is used for crediting the amount to numerous bank accounts by a single debit to the bank account of the user. It is helpful in making payments such as interest, salary, dividends, etc.

Working in Electronic Clearing System

For carrying out transactions using ECS (Credit), one needs to submit the relevant information about the beneficiaries, such as account number, account name, bank name, IFSC Code, branch name, scheduled payment date, etc. in the specified format (namely input file) via its banker to approved clearinghouse where such bank is registered.

The bank managing such an electronic clearing system Centre will then debit the account of the user on the date specified as scheduled payment date and credit the amount to the accounts of destination banks, which then transfer the same to the beneficiaries’ bank accounts.

A similar process is being followed for making use of the electronic clearing system (Debit) for receiving bulk payments. The user needs to submit similar banking information about its customers in the input file through the bank to the clearinghouse. The bank managing the electronic clearing system Centre then passes on the debit to destination banks for further debit to the customer’s bank accounts and credit the user’s banker for further credit to the user’s account.

Difference Between ECS and NACH

The electronic clearing system has limited reach with limited centers in the country whereas the NACH platform aims to have a larger reach throughout the country.

In NACH, the activation time of mandate is usually 10 days as against 30 days in case of the electronic clearing system.

Further, the presentation and settlement process takes around 3-4 days in ECS while NACH completes the same within 24 hours itself.

NACH has an online grievance redressal system that has been missing in the electronic clearing system.

NACH provides for a unique reference number for transactions that can be used for tracking them. The same is not available in the case of the electronic clearing system.

Advantages

It eliminates the need for physically depositing the documents and other instruments at the bank for payments.

The risk of paper instruments, such as cheques, being lost or misused is eliminated.

The fund transfer is quick and is normally received by the beneficiary within the same day.

This enables a user to make automatic payments on due dates such as utility bill payments. Thus, customers need not remember due dates if they use this service.

The overall process is also much convenient for bankers with everything done electronically.

The system is a cost-effective process for making bulk payments.

Disadvantages

Initial activation of the electronic clearing system is a lengthy process.

There is no online grievance cell available for the resolution of a dispute.

Conclusion

This is a useful tool that is being used by almost all business persons who have a large number of transactions to be made during the day. It helps them to complete their payment process in a timely and cost-effective manner.

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This has been a guide to the What is Full Form of ECS i.e (Electronic Clearing System). Here we discuss types of ECS, objectives, and differences between ECS and NACH along with advantages and disadvantages. You may refer to the following articles to learn more about finance –